Just a thought but a glossary of acronyms might be a good idea. I’m just reading through and you use DoT a lot and there isn’t an easy to find definition for it. I’m sure there won’t be many but terms like DoT and BAR won’t come naturally to a first timer so having a dedicated section to reference these terms might make it easier to follow the guide.

I’ll have to think about that. I do try and define each acronym when I first use it, so someone reading in order would get those. It might be an idea to have a separate post for this (and a complete overview of the contents) though. For now, I’ll just keep going through the main story!

Vault Hunting 102: Pre-Sequel Basics for New Players Part 4

Welcome back for part 4 of this guide, where I’ll be playing through the main story and trying to provide hints, tips, and insights along the way without spoilers. (There may be some, but they’ll be hidden by spoiler tags.)

Note:Cyan headings denote missions, while other colours denote main sections, gear and weapons, or skills entries. Primary map names are shown in yellow and secondary maps in light yellow, while specific named locations are shown in light blue. If you find any errors, parts that are unclear, or just have a question, highlight the relevant bit and hit the “quote reply” button to post a message; I’ll try and respond to everything in a timely manner.

We left off having opened the way up to Pity’s Fall. At this point, you may want to head back to Concordia to re-stock and buy further storage upgrades, or wrap up any outstanding side quests in Triton Flats. Whenever you’re ready, hit the Fast Travel to Pity’s Fall to resume the main story.

Special Note for “To Arms”: The final end of this side quest has some interesting dialogue, but moving around too soon can easily cut it off mid-sentence. Pause and enjoy the moment, then go check out your new Oz Kit

Pity’s Fall

Challenges:

Three vault symbols

Two miss-able challenges (main story)

Two other challenges

Discoverable side quest:

Only appears after completing the main story objective on the map

Note: This map alternates between interior and exterior areas repeatedly. One thing you’ll notice particular on this map is the difference in gravity between the two areas: you can still double-jump and slam inside, but you won’t go as high or be in the air for as long as if you were outside.

You’ll spawn in to Pity’s Fall at the Drakensburg Gate, beside some vending machines. You’ll see the way foward and upward through a series of ramps and debris, with the inevitable scavs. Don’t forget to use your double-jump abilities to help you get around and hit enemies who have gone behind cover. Work your way up the Drakensburg Gangway to the main door, where you’ll also need to deal with some turrets. There are more vending machines here if you need them. Note that, from here on in, there are a lot of references to standard science fiction tropes, along with some explicit references to well-known franchises - if you enjoy such trivia, keep your eyes peeled!

Once inside you’ll find yourself in Core Systems but unable to continue forward. Clear the area and wait out the full extent of the dialogue, at which point a side door will open to the Starboard Ascent. This area is mainly catwalks, platforms, and jump pads: if you go over the edge, it’s insta-death, so be careful. Remember that, in addition to straight-out boosting, you can use your Oz kit to maneuvre while in the air so you can control your descent to some extent.

After fighting through several waves of scavs and dealing with turrets and stolen Dahl jetfighters you’ll reach the Hanger Bay where there’s an ammo vending machine. Pushing through takes you back outside to a large area with multiple levels on each side. Your goal is one of the two entrances on the upper level on the far side (either will do). Watch out, as some of the ridges on the terrain can get you stuck if you simply try to run forward everywhere. There are plenty of lootable objects here, along with several oxygen sources, so feel free to take your time.

On the other side you’ll hit the Briefing Room on your way up a couple of jumps to the Engine Room. There are more vending machines right outside here and, again, you’ll need to wait for the dialogue to complete before the door opens. Note, however, that the scavscan (and occasionally do) pass and/or shoot you through the barrier!

The Engine Room itself is a large, almost square room with multiple catwalks down each side accessible by jump pad from the far end (as you come in). You can use these catwalks to access the main engine area (near end as you come in) by jumping and boosting across the gap. There are also a couple of small observation room at the end, and plenty of both enemies and loot.

Missable Story Challenge 1: During the Engine Room sequence, you’ll here the dialogue refer to the FLOW REGULATOR and your invisible NPC companion (seriously) will be instructed to hit a switch. When you look around, you’ll see that the first target has appeared (it has the usual glowing skin on it that marks it as a mission objective). DO NOT SHOOT THIS if you want the challenge. There’s a way to get up to it using jump pads and your double-jumps, where you can either melee it or hit is with a sticky grenade. After you’ve destroyed this item, you’ll be sent to unlock the second item that you should also avoid shooting if you want the challenge. Note that you can ONLY achieve this during the story mission, but you can do it on any play-through.

Get up by the main engine (the end nearest where you came in) and onto the crate on the near side of the platform. You’ll see a vent sticking out from the wall/ductwork just above the regulator node you have to destroy. You can land on this with a careful jump and boost (aim for where the round vent juts out of the larger case). Once on top, crouch your character and then carefully move forward while hitting the melee button/key until you can see you are doing damage. Finish the job and then head back down to the engine platform. Use the console to open one of the upper windows around the engine core - you can jump up and perch here to drop grenade(s) inside to damage the core.

Once you’re done, the mission marker will move and you can head to the next area by dropping into the drive shaft from the engine platform on the opposite side, walking through to the far end, double-jumping, and then climbing the ladder.. You’ll now be in Engineering which, if you look closely, appears to be off the map! There’s a couple of chests and lockers as you move through. Pause to reload and reassign your weapons before you hit the jump pad across to the Shattered Aft, especially if you want to get the next missable challenge.

Missable Story Challenge 2: I would recommend equipping your best rocket launchers into your first and second slots and making sure both are reloaded before hitting the jump pad. Turn to the right as soon as you land, jump over the lip in the floor, and be ready to unload as soon as the door opens; if you need to take multiple shots, better to swap weapons than reload.

Once through the door and inside, you’ll need to fight your way across the chasm to the Crew Quarters and then drop down to Security. Note: drop down the right side of the elevator shaft, or you’ll hit the return jump pad on the left! Make sure you hit the switch on the console in Security, which will turn off the force field; continue on through Core Systems (which looks totally different coming from this direction even though you’ve already been here!) and fight your way across the Suspension Bridge.

Use the jump pads on the far side to get up, and restock/sell junk at the vending machines beside the elevator to the Command Center. This is also a good time to select your weapons and make sure they are all reloaded, as taking the elevator triggers a cut-scene and then you’ll be straight into a boss fight with The Bosun

Boss FIght Chellenge: There is a challenge associated with this fight. Since The Bosun is a runnable boss, however, you can do this on subsequent visits if you didn’t succeed during the story mission.

This fight can be tricky until you’re familiar with the various phases and attacks. The Bosun has a fairly large shield which is most efficiently taken down using a shock weapon; after that, it’s straight health damage (unless the shields get recharged). Scavs will also start spawning in, which is both good and bad - they can obviously damage you, but you can second-wind off them if needed.

I would recommend against staying in the elevator, as there’s really no cover there. Going to the left will lead you up to a jump pad to the upper catwalk, which goes around the centre of the room in a U-shape. There’s cover to be had here if you need it, along with extra ammo. At the end of the fight, check the loot pile as The Bosun has a chance to drop the legendary launcherThe Cryophobia or the legendary SMGThe IVF.

Once done, continue through the Command Center to the AI Hub to complete the story mission and acquire your first SDU Weapon Equip Slot. This allows you to equip three weapons instead of the initial two, so assign something now. This also unlocks the discoverable side quest The Secret Chamber, which provides access to the unique pistolZarpedon’s Cyber Eagle. I would take this now, since the weapon won’t be obtainable at any higher level in NVHM and it is a rather useful shock weapon.

The Secret Chamber

This is a fairly straight-forward mission, except that you go back and forth a few times and you will need to remember the trick for over-powering the jump pads. Head back from the AI Hub to the Command Center and grab the mission item, then work your way back through to the Crew Quarters. Once done, turn to the nearest jump pad and over-power it to boost yourself up and across the gap in the direction of Engineering; you’re aiming for the upper-most level and the inactive elevator.

Once you’ve done what you need to, you’ll be back down a level but need to get to the second floor of the Crew Quarters. The easiest way is to repeat the previous steps. Once up on the second floor on the opposite side turn around and follow the floor out to the right. This will put you close enough to jump-boost across to the steel girder sticking out from the floor opposite you; from there, it’s just a quick jump to your destination.

After that, just follow the markers until you’re done. The fastest way back to the map entrance is back down to Security and across the Suspension Bridge, then cut across the room by the elevator to the Command Center and jump down on the far side.

Fresh Side Quests

Whether you opted to take The Secret Chamber or not, you’ll need to head back to Pickle in Outlands Canyon to hand in the story mission. The fastest option is to use the Fast Travel at Drakensburg Gate. Turning in Intelligences of the Artificial Variety advances the story to Let’s Build a Robot Army, as well as unlocking a bunch of new side quests:

Discoverable side quest in Triton Flats: No Such Thing as a Free Launch (level 12) - the unique launcherThe Volt Thrower

Of these, you’ll want to do Treasure of the ECHO Madre (and possibly Nothing is Never an Option) if you’re looking to complete all the map challenges and/or earn the map achievement/trophy. Similarly, you can unlock another achievement/trophy by doing both Wiping the Slate and Home Delivery, while No Such Thing as a Free Launch. makes it easier to complete one of the Triton Flats map challenges.

Map Area Challenge 1: There’s a map challenge at the end of Treasure of the ECHO Madre when you enter Rabid Adam’s Treasure Trove. The best advice for this is to avoid using area-of-effect and/or splash damage weapons (launchers, grenades, spike/nova shields, the 3DD1.E Oz kit, etc.), and make sure you land all your shots on target. Should you fail to get this during the side quest, you can try again later since Rabid Adams is another runnable boss who has a chance to drop the unique SMGMarek’s Mouth

Lunar Junction

Time to get back to the main story. You’ll want to head to Lunar Junction which is at the north (top) end of Triton Flats: grab a Stingray from either the Concordia or The Grabba Fast Travel and head along either west (across the bridge and down through So Much Serenity or east (across Burraburra and The Pale. When you arrive, follow the marker and dialogue instructions to catch a train!

WARNING: Stay off the tracks once you’ve activated the mission objective!

Map Area Challenge 2: There’s a specific challenge related to Lunar Junction and the shuggaraths that spawn inside by the tracks. On the story mission in NVHM you can do this by going straight to the mission objective without stopping to loot anything along the way. I usually go back to the bridge and either stay on top or head part way down the platform on the elevator side.

When each shuggarath appears at the far end of the platform across the tracks from the elevator and nearest Triton Flats, ignore the rathyds it spawns and take it out as fast as you can. It should be possible to complete the challenge this way.

If not, the shuggarathsshould respawn after a save-quit-restart, so I believe you will be able to try again later. (If anyone can confirm this, please let me know!)

Once the train is in the station, it provides the map transition to the abandoned Dahl Titan Industrial Facility.

Titan Industrial Facility

On arrival, you’ll be at the Titan Transportation Hub at the map Fast Travel station. Note the oxygen generator directly in front and below you - don’t activate this if you want to complete the related map challenge. There are vending machines right there as well, immediately below where you are standing. Oh, and more torks will soon be upon you - you know what to do!

The main story mission flow is quite staight-forward through this map. Three of the map-specific challenges can be a bit of a pain, but they are all doable. For the oxygen dome challenge, the main thing is to avoid triggering them accidentally. To this end, avoid using (unequip!) any shock weapon, grenade, nova or spike shield, or the 3DD1.E Oz kit.

You should be able to pick up enough O2 canisters from clearing enemies to make it between buildings. If at any time you find yourself short of O2 canisters, look for and shoot one of the many tork nest eggs - you should score a canister and some other stuff from busting it open and killing the tork inside.

Work your way through the first tork infested building until you emerge on the other side at the Stingray Factory Apron. You’ll be delayed here a bit, but you’ll eventually get redirected to a jump pad located on top of one of the circular structures that dot the area. Boost during the last part of the jump to make sure you land on the roof at your immediate destination for the next mission objective.

Once inside, work your way forward to the next objective marker. Once you’ve done what’s necessary, ascend up to the Stingray Factory Atrium amd clear the room. Grab the loot before continuing up and around the corridor to the next marker. There’ll be a bit more dialogue just as you reach a closed door activated by a wheel: pause here before you open the door to prepare for one of the map challenges.

Missable Story Challenge 3: The first missable challenge is directly ahead. You’ll be entering a long rectangular room with a lowered floor featuring plenty of obstacles between you and the far exit. Progress far enough in, and three Lil’ Scavs will rush to close that door. The best strategy for killing them before they can do so is to freeze them in place, which will take:

a cryo launcher or longbow grenade

a clear view to hit them while they’re still grouped together

Your best bet is to do this co-op, and have one player push forward to trigger the action while another hangs back with a clear view to take the shot. If you miss it and the door closes, you’ll need to either wait until the next play-through (TVHM) or join someone eles’s game.

Once the area is clear, it’s time to move on. If (like me ) you didn’t get the Lil’ Scavs before they closed the door, you’ll need to jump up to a broken catwalk to get out. The easiest way to get up is to stand just in front of it and to the right side. Jump and then boost straight up, and only push forward on your movement controls (LS on console) when you’re at the top of your double-jump. You can then head out to the Stingray Factory: Main Hall (something of a misnomer - I think the developers stuck the name on the wrong part of the map!)

Once insde the next building, you’ll see a very prominent mission marker; approaching it will trigger some dialogue which will then get you back outside. Watch yourself here, as it’s easy to over-jump and go off the edge of the map. If you do find yourself drifting too far off course, try hitting your boost for some extra momentum in the right direction.

This will get you back inside to an area where you can hit some vending machines while the dialogue sequence plays out. At the end of this, exit out the other side to the Titan Industrial Facility Nexus. There’ll be a bunch more torks spawning here. Note that if you shoot one of the barrels in this first area, the other will detonate too; use this to your advantage!

As you press forward through multiple waves of torks and scavs you’ll see a set of metal stairs heading up on the far side; there’s a building on this upper level to the left and an the open area to the right of this has an oxygen generator which you can hear beeping. Entering the open area and pushing forward will trigger the next missable challenge, so you might want to claer as many enemies as possible while you’re still some distance away. You can use a combination of the oxygen geysers and jump pads in the lower area to get up on some of the other structures for a better look without getting too close.

Missable Story Challenge 4: The objective here is to kill the scavs at the far end of the open area before they can rush into the building at the very end and close the doors. Your best options are the same tactics as for the previous similar challenge. Again, if you miss this, you’ll either have to do it in someone else’s game or wait for the next play-through and try again.

Once you’re done everything, enter the final building - the Titan Robot Production Plant: Entrance - where you’ll find a vending machine and the map transition to the Titan Robot Production Plant for the next stage of the story mission. Note that the oxygen dome challenge is completed when you stand immediately in front of the map transition so that the control for it activates. Pass on through to access the next map and its Fast Travel Station.

Titan Robot Production Plant

Challenges:

One vault symbol

Two story mission challenges (both missable)

You’ll enter the map in the Titan Robot Production Plant: Core Systems area, right beside the Fast Travel Station. There is also a full set of vending machines near here. The next stage can be quite long (longer than the one just completed), so take a break now if you need one. This is also a good time to travel back to Concordia if you want to store/trade/grind/upgrade.

BUG WARNING: There is a game-breaking glitch that can occur part way through the main story mission on this map. The mission consists of a series of quests to find something, install it, and activate transport for the next step. You can double-back to the vending machines, use the Fast Travel, and even save-quit during most of these stages except one. I’ll clearly indicate this just before you get to that stage in the quest.

You start at the north end of the map with a main hall to the south and a security office above you. I prefer to take the stairs immediately to the left up to the security office and start clearing from there, especially since it allows you to check the layout before you start fighting. Or, you can just charge in if that’s you’re preferred style. Many of the scavs in this map will have rocket packs, so expect to see them coming from all directions and levels.

Once you’ve cleared the final wave, one of the gates on the side of the main hall will have opened and you’ll be good to go through to the Power Control area for your first objective. Once you’re done here, head up the stairs, open another gate, and return to the security office up top (I just boost-jump across from the upper catwalk straight into the office - much faster than taking the stairs!)

Note: The areas on both sides work the same way; try to open as many of the gates in any given area as possible as you pass through, since this will make subsequent trips easier.

Your next objective involves more waves of enemies but, once done, gather up the items you need (if you didn’t take out the targets rapidly yourself, they can be scattered throughout the map on multiple levels, but they all have location markers on your minimap) then go and open up the gate to the Oculus Lab. This section is also pretty straight forward, then it’s back to the hall to unveil the prototype.

Tip: This is a good point to head back to the map entrance and sell/restock, or make a quick trip back to Concordia should you wish to grab more storage upgrades or grind stuff.

Once that’s done, it’s off to the next room to the south - the Assembly Hangar. If you want to do this in style, ride the prototype on the crane system; otherwise, you can either take the elevator up from the far end, or get through from the catwalk on the left side. Your next objective is to enter the Testing Facility on west side of the Assembley Hangar.

BUG WARNING: A game-breaking glitch can occur if, at the end of this segment, you advance the mission by activating the console back in the Assembly Hangar and then either leave the map or save and quit. If you are hosting a co-op session, you might want to warn the other players ahead of time if you do not intend to complete the sequence that takes place immediately after you’re done with the Testing Facility

This next section is great fun if you enjoy mobbing, and an excellent way of levelling up quickly. As you walk in to the targeting area you’ll notice a garage door straight ahead of you and two entrances at raised platforms either side. If you want to maximize your XP gains, ready your grenades and fast-firing weapons, then position yourself in front of the garage door. The faster you can kill the scavs that emerge from in front of you (and occasionally from the sides as well, so keep one eye on your minimap), the longer you can prolong this fight and the more XP, moonstones, and loot you can accumulate.

Once you’re done, head back to the Assembley Hangar; ONLY ACTIVATE THE CONSOLE IF YOU ARE READY TO CONTINUE WITH THE NEXT OBJECTIVE

Missable Story Challenge 5: The next missable story challenge is on the way out from the next area. This can be extremely hard to pull off solo even in NVHM if you allow [spoiler]Felicity[/color] to exit ahead of you. To succeed, you’ll need to be able to take out multiple enemies quickly: make sure you have high DPS weapons with fast reload available to you and your team.

Spoiler: Here’s a cool video by @Kurtdawg13 showing how to make this challenge much easier/

Now go to the east side of the Assembly Hangar through the large gate that opens. (This gate is the source of the problem if you leave and come back at this point - it will be closed on you, preventing you from continuing with the quest unless you do it in someone else’s game.) Work your way through, killing off the scavs along the way. Eventually, you’ll find yourself in the Locomotion Assembly room.

Make sure you loot and reload before activating the console to advance the objective if you are attempting to beat the missable challenge to kill all the scavs on the way out before Felicity does; note that some will spawn in behind you as well as in front, and that Felicity will frequently get in your way if you’re trying to do this solo.

Back to the Assembly Hangar, where you can take the elevator up to the Transit Area. Much fighting and a couple of ambushes later, you should have cleared the room and be ready to go to the final area on this map. If you need ammo, there are plenty of crates before you go on, and there is a full set of Vending Machines on your way. Clear some space in your inventory for the final boss fight ahead (just in case!)

Once you’re ready, jump down and pass through the tunnel in to the Unit Embarkation area. Before doing anything else, it’s a good idea to look around and get a sense of the room layout, including the central pillars, the raised area around the far end, and the multiple ammo crate locations. Check which weapons you have equipped: I like to have something shock to take down shields, something corrosive for armour, and a cryo or explosive launcher for emergencies. When you’re ready, activate the console to trigger some dialogue and then retreat up on to one of the side areas before the cut-scene and subsequent boss fight commence.

Map Area Challenge 3: Remember the components you attached to the Constructor? To succeed, you’ll need to destroy the legs before destoying any of the three turrets (one on each side and one on top); good marksmanship is rewarded here! Avoid using area-of-effect grenades until after the legs are off if you want to get this challenge. Fortunately, if you miss this one you can come back after a save-quit-restart and try again, since the boss becomes runnable once the story mission is completed.

There are at least two phases to this fight (more if you struggle to take the boss down), and it can be a bit confusing if you aren’t familiar with Constructors and their fight mechanics from Borderlands 2. A few general tips:

The turrets on the side and top can be taken out separately, but will reduce the total health when you do so.

Any orange shieldWILL reflect bullets back at you, so shoot at something else (such as whatever might be generating the shield)

Keep moving, use cover when reloading, and match elements for the most efficient combat

You will notice that the appearance and position of the boss change as each stage progresses; also keep an ear out for the dialogue between Jack and Gladstone, as this will give you clues to what might happen next. Note that, when you take down the last of the health bar, friendly bots will spawn in and then there will be a mini-lootsplosion: you’ll want to position yourself on the main floor in front of the boss just before this happens to catch any goodies, because the friendly loaderswill pick up weapons lying on the floor if you let them.

Rewards: The boss here has a chance to drop the legendary grenade modThe Quasar as well as a set of unique character heads and skins. The heads can only be obtained during the story mission, so if you’re aiming to collect them you’ll either have to dashboard/force-quit (exit the game without saving) or hope you’re luckier on your next play-through. If you should by any chance end up with a head or skin you already have unlocked, hit the relevant trade section in the forums - someone will want it!

Once all is well and good, there’s a loot room off at the rear left, and a Fast Travel station you can trigger to head back to Concordia at the rear right.

Concordia (2)

Once you’re ready, head back to Concordia. You may want to clear a little backpack space before heading to see Jack at Moxxi’s Bar. Talk to Jack to turn in Let’s Build… and start Home Sweet Home. You’ll get a one-time-per-playthrough chance to loot Moxxi’s Toy Box, where you’ll find the unique Moxxi gear the Vibra Pulse, the Slammer, and the Kiss of Death. Head back to Jack and then follow the vanguard to the Fast Travel and head to the Helios Hub of Heroism.

Only two Stingrays can be spawned from a Moon Zoomy Station but, if someone is riding one, you can go up to the handlebars and use the prompted key/button to spawn another from it.

Huh? I can access stingrays #3 and #4 in the Moon Zoomy interface just fine. Walk up to it, select stringrays as vehicle type, then the controls for #1 and #2 are visible (select with Up/Down or the mouse; I wish WSAD would work in menus, but whatever). The right cursor key swaps those out for the #3 and #4 controls, left goes back to #1 and #2. Should work similarly on consoles I guess.

I was farting around with this literally a day ago with Wilhelm when he ran around Triton Flats… not sure there’s a strategic advantage for a single player to do this other than you get four “teleport exits”.

Always good to know for co-op, though! First time I was playing with more than one other person, and I didn’t realise there was another page of stingrays, so I got frustrated that both players took off and left me standing there. D’oh!

Vault Hunting 102: Pre-Sequel Basics for New Players Part 5

Your spoiler-free guide to characters, gear, loot, quests, and skills for your first play-through, covering Hyperion Hub of Heroism through Jack’s Office, Research and Development, The Veins of Helios and the Lunar Launching Station to The Eye of Helios

Welcome back for part 5 of this guide, where I’ll be playing through the main story and trying to provide hints, tips, and insights along the way without spoilers. (There may be some, but they’ll be hidden by spoiler tags.)

Note:Cyan headings denote missions, while other colours denote main sections, gear and weapons, or skills entries. Primary map names are shown in yellow and secondary maps in light yellow, while specific named locations are shown in light blue. If you find any errors, parts that are unclear, or just have a question, highlight the relevant bit and hit the “quote reply” button to post a message; I’ll try and respond to everything in a timely manner.

You arrive at the map’s Fast Travel near a couple of vending machines near the Helios Immigration Station. Proceed through and out into the Central Terminal. You want to fight your way across diagonally to the right of the elevator tower straight ahead of you, then throuhg the arch and straight ahead ot the mission marker. Of course the way will be blocked, so retrace your steps to the Central Terminal and find yourself a CL4P-TP unit.

There now follows one of the more bizarre mission segments in the game (and for a Borderlands game, that’s saying something!) Basically, hang around the elevator entrance and listen in while defending yourself from waves of Dahl Lost Legion forces. Eventually, the way will be open and you’ll be able to take the elevator map transition to Jack’s Office.

Jack’s Office

Challenges:

One vault symbol

One area challenge

Unlisted:

Four lost echo recordings

Enter and proceed through Hyperion Customer Service (an unsurprisingly small cubicle farm) to unlock the map’s Fast Travel. Follow Jack. Note the Bounty Board on one side (facing the desk); this will become active later on when the story brings you back here.

Tip: keep following until Jack says, “Oh hey! Over here!” Trust me on this - you would not believe how many players have gone multiple characters and missed this every time.

Once you’re ready, head back out through the map transition but this time hang a right out of the elevator and head through the World of Shopping. Once you’ve cleared your way through to the Road to Research you might want to double back and complete the challenges in the World of Shopping area. Otherwise, look around and then unlock the map transition at the far end of the Road to Research. This will let you pass through to Hyperion Research and Development.

Research and Development

Note: the camera challenge does not show the number of cameras, or increment a count while completing it. There are actually 32 cameras on the map.

One story mission challenge (missable?)

You arrive in Research and Development beside the Fast Travel and near a couple of vending machines. Your immediate objective is through the corridor to Indigenous Species Research where you’ll find some escaped torks and be reunited with Gladstone Katoa: talk to him to turn in Home Sweet Home and advance to Science and Violence (level 19), earning your final SDU Weapon EquipSlot upgrade.

Note: the map will not appear on the list straight away - I believe you need to complete the next story mission Science and Violence before it is added. If you need to head back to Concordia before continuing the story mission, it’s best to return to Research and Development by way of Jack’s Office, as all enemies on the map will respawn.

Science and Violence

After talking with Gladstone, he will let you through to the Stalker Biome and everyone’s favourite Pandoran critter, the stalker. Clear the area down to the marker to talk to the first trapped scientist, who needs you to retrieve something, then continue through the biome until you reach Stalker Observation Room 11-B. Once you’re done there, head back and talk to the scientist to advance the mission; he will open the way to the Aquatic Observation Area. More torks and stalkers ahead, along with more Dahl Lost Legion troops.

Note: If nothing seems to happen after talking to each scientist but you notice them waving their arm, head over and stand close to them; you need to do this before they will go and actually unlock the door to the next area.

Stalking Stalkers

These critters are a pain because, when their shield is active they can cloak and go invisible. If you managed to inflict some damage-over-time on them before that happens, you can still see a faint outline, but it will fade in time. They also run and leap at you, and can easily run faster than you can back-pedal. The best way to deal with them is:

Equip a shock spike shield so their shield is stripped when they jump you

Use shock grenades such as Teslas or the Quasar

Jump over them - you can turn faster than they can (Hat tip: @Prismatic_Me)

Otherwise jump and slam, and dodge or run sideways; NEVER simply back up, as you will get pinned

The trapped scientist in the Aquatic Observation Area needs you to retrieve something for him as well. He’ll let you through into the Aquatic Life Stabilization Area. Note that if you want to complete all the challenges in this area, you’ll need to get at least one enemy to fall into the water before you wrap up this segment of the mission; a singularity grenade of some sort if particularly effective for this, but you should also be able to melee something off the edge. You will eventually find the requested item and meet back up with the trapped scientst, you will then let your through to the Robotic Durability and Adaptability Research area to rescue the last scientist.

Follow the marker into the De Quidt Synaptic Processing Area, where you will meet and need to defeat the runnable boss, X-STLK-23, who has a chance to drop the legendary class mod (COM)The Eridian Vanquisher (one variant for each vault hunter) as well as a set of skins. There are plenty of other stalkers here as well just to make things more interesting. Once you’re done, head back and unlock the door, then meet the scientist to advance the mission. After this, simply return to Jack’s Office using the Fast Travel (note that Research and Development is now included on the destination list.)

When you arrive, you’ll notice that the staff have finally shown up for work in Hyperion Customer Service - be sure to drop by for a chat! When you’re ready, head to Jack’s Office and talk to Jack to initiate an unfortunate series of events. Note:Roland and Lilith will greet you differently, depending on which character you picked; each character also responds to subsequent events differently - a nice touch. Once everything is done, talk to Jack again to turn in Science and Violence and start Watch Your Step (level 21).

More Side Quests

Note that there’s a bit of a jump in the story level at this point, but there’s a whole bunch more side quests and other opportunities unlocked as well. Some of these you can pick up while you’re still in the office, while others are discoverable elsewhere. Also note that the level of the Bounty Board side quests can change between them first appearing and turning in Science and Violence, so you may want to hold off accepting them until you are ready:

Sub-Level 13 (level 22) - unlocks additional mission; best in four-player co-op for the achievement/trophy (can be done in four-player split-screen on console)

Triton Flats discoverable side quest:

The Voyage of Captain Chef (level 16) - character head

Tip: After turning in Science and Violence there are three areas in the Hyperion Hub of Heroism where you may run into the map’s runnable mini-bossCorporal Bob. One of the area challenges is related to him. In addition to the challenge (which can be completed at any time), he has a chance to drop the legendaryAck Ack Oz Kit

Nakayama Side Quests

If you are aiming to complete all area challenges and/or get the achievement/trophy for discovering all named locations, you’ll need to do this series of quests. It also supplements (or prepares for) related content in the Hammerlock’s Hunt DLC (BL2) and events in Tales from the Borderlands.

To start this series, pick up An Urgent Message from Jack’s Office Bounty Board, then head out to Hyperion Hub of Heroism. Go left from the elevator and fight your way into the security office otherwise known as Harren Lockup. The mission sequence is very straightforward, and turning it in at the end unlocks the related side quests:

Handsome AI (level 18)

Paint Job (level 18) which in turn unlocks:

Kill Meg (level 18) - laser/class mod (COM)

During this, you’ll be able to complete the challenge to enter three stores, although for the Flower Shop you don’t actually go inside - just get as close to the door as possible. Note that the last side quest also unlocks the runnable bossMeg who has a chance to drop the legendary SMGThe Torrent.

Watch Your Step

To continue the story mission, travel to either Jack’s Office or Research and Development: exit to Hyperion Hub of Heroism and head towards the mission marker. Clear your way through the areas that were protected by a force field previously, and open up Helios Access Tunnel #27-B to access the map transition to the Veins of Helios

Veins of Helios

Challenges:

Set of five vault symbols

One missable side quest challenge (unlocked after story mission)

Four other map area challenges

This is an extensive map with multiple isolated indoor and outdoor areas that are connected by a series of jump pads. It is rather easy to get turned around the first few times through the map, especially since the multiple different levels aren’t easily distinguished on the main map tab in your inventory. I would recommend leaving exploration until after you’ve worked through the main story, since this map has no Fast Travel Station and it is easier to get to some locations from the map transition for the next primary map (Lunar Launching Station)

Tip: If you hit the jump pads aligned with their direction and leave your motion controls centred, you should land securely at the destination. You can push forward a little bit on some landings, but take care not to push your controls sideways or backwards, or you may miss the landing and take the long fall to the blue and white tunnel.

You start off inside in an area bounded by observation windows - take time to marvel at the Jetfighters flying by! You’ll meet a new class of enemy here, many of whom are wearing what look like welding masks - pop those off with a head shot to expose their noggin and make it easier to finish them off. Work your way through the connected areas; note that unlike other maps, the indoor areas are still low gravity so your boosts and slams will be highly effective. Eventually you’ll reach the first airlock to the outside: if you wait too long to pass through after activating and opening the inner door, it will close on you and you’ll have to hit it again.

From here, you’re at the south end of the map and will want to head west, just as soon as Jack has made it possible. Fight your way across to the second oxygen dome and then jump across to the building directly north. You can either go down through the inside or outside. If you want to explore, make for the roof opening and boost sideways once you see the opening to the first landing. You can keep doing this through multiple levels.

Tip: Remember to turn on oxygen domes and let the dome fully establish itself before opening any nearby ammo crates. That way, the contents won’t go flying! Plus, fire weapons will be much more effective for you.

Either way, you’ll find yourself much lower down and fighting across a roof towards an oxygen dome and a pair of jump pads: the lower one takes you back to the first airlock, while the upper one will ultimately take you to your destination. After some more dialogue, you’ll need to jump across and down to the next area north and fight your way into Central Maintenance. This consists of three rooms which interconnect on different levels. Once back outside there’ll be an event and some more dialogue.

After this, take the obvious jump pad across to Plasma Facility A, drop through the roof, and fight your way down to blow stuff up. The easiest way to get to get to Plasma Facility B is to go back up as high as you can (preferably to the roof) and then make for the ledge you can see to the north on the east side. You can run along this to get to your next marker and repeat. If you miss, you’ll see an oxygen dome and jump pad down at the very lowest level; the latter will take you back to the north side of Central Maintenance so no worries, mate!

Tip: I like to take out the northern, mid, then southern targets. When you take out the last of the three, position yourself on the short walkway facing the target (not the long walkway you use to get from one end to the other) before you take it out. You’ll soon see why!

You’ll ultimately end up back on the north side of Central Maintenance again. From there, look across and slightly down to see the exit: the easiest route is to once again take the jump pad to Plasma Facility A, run across the roof, drop down to the ledge, and again from there to the exit. Once inside the final tunnel, you can take the map transition to the Lunar Launching Station

You spawn in at the south-east corner of the map beside a set of vending machines at the end of a tunnel that leads out to the Moonshot Supply Depot - basically, the other side of where you left Helios via the Moonshot Cannon right back at the start of the story. There’s one Bounty Board here, and another at your immediate destination.

Special Note: Although it really isn’t a big deal for NVHM, many players like to get the final story mission reward at maximum level in True Vault HUnter Mode (TVHM). This in turn means that you have to be at level 50 before turning in the penultimate mission. If this is your goal, I suggest levelling up as much as possible before completing Eye To Eye. To maximise your XP gains, you may also want to complete as many of the existing side quests as possible before turning in Watch Your Step so that you aren’t too over-levelled (which reduces your XP gain along the way.) See the quote in this post for the story mission level ranges in TVHM

Fight your way through to the marker and open the door to the elevator room, then ascend to the Laser Command Center. You’ll get to activate the Fast Travel station here. Once everything is done, talk to Jack to turn in Watch Your Step and start Eye to Eye. You’ll now find extra side quests both here and back at Jack’s Office on the respective Bounty Boards:

Eye to Eye

Tip: This is a good opportunity to polish off one of the two area Powersuit challenges. You’ll notice as you run around this map that Power Cores (cylinders filled with blue plasma) pop up repeatedly as you pass them. These are the things that you should either activate or avoid activating, depending on which challenge you want to complete.

To activate them, use the prompt button/key, which will turn the contents red and turn the cylinder into a giant exploding hazard. Note that you (and/or your shield) will take damage from these when they are detonated by weapon fire or DoT, nova, melee, etc.

To continue the story mission from the Lunar Launching StationFast Travel or Laser Command Center, simply jump back down the large ramp and double-back through either tunnel beside it to come out in the Laser Amplification Nexus. You’ll want to fight your way straight north to the Helios Targetting Centrum, at which point the inevitable occurs.

For the next stage, follow the obvious lines on the floor until the branch; at that point either go left for Power Core Alpha or right for Power Core Beta and work your way through the opposition until you reach the mission marker and objective. As you approach the final point, take note of the red-lit tunnel with an “Access Denied” sign over the opening - you can use these as short-cuts for rapid return to the Helios Targetting Centrum.

After a defence stage (including some banter over the echo between the various NPCs “assisting” you else-where) the way will be clear to the map transition to the Eye of Helios secondary map. Note before you go through that there’s a room directly below the main terminal structure in the Helios Targetting Centrum with some crates, a chest, and a vending machine; there will be additional vending machines on the other side of the map transition.

Eye of Helios

Jack will spawn in with you once through the map transition, and you’re best off not getting too far ahead of him (especially when he tells you to wait!) Naturally, the shortest route to the BFL (beside the vending machines is blocked, so you have to take the long way round. Once Jack is close enough the doors to one of several elevators in this section will open and you can ride up to a platform named, appropriately enough, The Long Way Round. Stay facing the elevator button to be facing the exit at the top; a major cut-scene will unfold and then it’s time for a boss fight.

The arena you’re fighting in presents a number of features: the side you enter on has structures ringing it but the opposite side is wide open for you to fall clean off the map - something to remember if, like me, you tend to back-pedal a lot. There are several sets of power cores arranged around the middle that will pop up when you are near them and can be activated. There are also several grids that the boss uses in the first phase to recharge shields: this causes them to become shock hazards afterwards, so map awareness is key.

SPOILERS!

If you want more help with this fight:

Zarpedon’s Power Suit will charge up shields using the power grids in the floor, and will periodically recharge shields (which appears to be triggered by her remaining health). Her attacks during this phase are:

shock plasma balls (larger versions of Deadlift’s shots)

A physical rush, signalled by a set posture

Melee attacks

Additional Lost Legion troops spawning in

When she is recharging shields, you can either use this time to activate the nearest set of power cores or, if you have a decent shock weapon, counter the shield charge (there’s a set timer for the action). A neat trick is to set them up and retreat behind them so you can trigger them during one of the rush attacks.

There’s a long-ish period at the end of the first phase where Jack is looking around but you still have control of your character: use this time to grab stuff, and maybe set up additional power cores ahead of the second phase fight.

Jack can take a lot of aggro for you during the second phase, so feel free to hang back towards the elevator area if you need to. Some things to watch out for:

The swirling quarterstaff will reflect bullets but not area-of-effect damage

Get ready to jump when you see Zarpedon set up for a slag nova: it fires horizontally so a well-timed jump can avoid damage

It can be hard to see targets through the slag and shock effects, so take a quick check of your minimap if you take a knee and can’t immediately see a suitable target for a second wind.

When it’s all over, take a little time to enjoy the cut-scene and have a good look around: there’s a chance for several cool drops including the legendary laserThe ZX-1, the shieldThe Prismatic Bulwark, or a set of character heads.

Time to blow up the Death Star! Er, shut down the laser safely. Take the other elevator down to the Hyperion Contingency Armory. There are multiple loot chests here, but you have to pass near them to trigger their digistructing appearance. I usually circle the room to get them all spawned in, then circle again to check the contents. Once ready, pass through to The Laser Core. This section is pretty self-explanatory, and there are no enemies to be fought here. Just a couple of notes:

Definitely follow Jack’s advice about staying out of the firing chamber when the laser is on. The sound effects should cue you one when it’s not safe to venture across.

You come in on one side of the actual main chamber and will need to exit through the door on the opposite side to get to the mission marker, but you’ll need to wait until the dialogue ends before it opens

Once everything is done, follow Jack to a one way Fast Travel and head back to the Lunar Launching StationFast TravelLaser Command Center for the end of this sequence. Once the major cut-scene is over, turn in to Jack to advance the story to The Beginning of the End and unlock the discoverable side quest Picking Up the Pieces (level 19). This is a good time to head back to Concordia and take care of any side quests, grinding, or upgrade purchases.

Tip: keep following until Jack says, “Oh hey! Over here!” Trust me on this - you would not believe how many players have gone multiple characters and missed this every time

This 10 times over!

VaultHunter101:

Jump and slam, and dodge or run sideways; NEVER simply back up, as you will get pinned

It might be worth mentioning that jumping straight over the stalkers often gives you the most time to respond as the turning animation is quite slow. This is definitely far more relevant against the rabids in later playthroughs however just adding onto this line seems easy enough to do.

VaultHunter101:

head to Jack’s Office and talk to Jack to initiate an unfortunate seeries of events.

When you mention shock grenades and the quasar, maybe it’s worth mentioning singularities as another method to control stalkers. Although maybe that’s just a general combat thing that need not be said here.

I was thinking more of the fact that you want to ding their shield to make them visible. I think I need to revisit the grenade section: I’m sure most of those who played BL2 first will know about self-damage, but it would probably be good to throw that in somewhere fairly early in this guide too.

You may want to add that the Bosun also drops unique head and skin customizations, in addition to his legendary gear.

The Turret Engineer challenge (the one where you destroy the legs of Felicity Rampant before the turrets) is not missable, and can be completed if you go back and kill her outside of the story mission.

Thanks for that. Do you know if the Deadlift challenge can be completed post-story? I haven’t really tried it, but if the completion test is triggered by picking up the Digistruct key you’d only be able to do this during the story.

I’m fairly certain the Deadlift ones are locked to the story mission kill. I only know about the Felicity one because I’ve completed it when going back to her to farm for a Quasar.

EDIT: @VaultHunter101, one other thing you may want to mention for Felicity is that she has unique heads for each class, but she can only drop those on the story mission kill. Y’know, for those weirdos like me who want to collect all the customization options.

While we’re on the subject: Lunar Launch Facility and the power core/power suit challenges (kill five power suits with/without using power cores). My initial thought is that this should be doable without being tied to the story, as long as you do all five in one session, since the powersuits and cores always respawn. Do you know if that’s correct?

[color=wheat]Your spoiler-free guide to characters, gear, loot, quests, and skills for your first play-through, covering Hyperion Hub of Heroism through Jack’s Office, Research and Development and The Veins of Helios to the Lunar Launching Station

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You may want to mention how great one of the rewards Moxxi gives you for completing Let’s Build a Robot Army is for dispatching those pesky stalkers.

Corporal Bob also has a skin drop for each class, in addition to the Ack Ack!